ABA - American Bar Association
08/03/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 08/03/2026 18:00
Incoming ABA President Barbara Howard highlights need to protect voting rights
August 03, 2026
Incoming ABA President Barbara Howard highlights need to protect voting rights
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The American Bar Association will continue to staunchly defend the rule of law in America and around the world and to protect elections from attacks. That was the message Cincinnati lawyer Barbara J. Howard shared Monday at the organization's Annual Conference in Chicago.
Cincinnati attorney Barbara J. Howard will become president of the American Bar Association at the conclusion of the ABA Annual Conference in Chicago.
American Bar Association photo
Howard, who will become ABA president Aug. 4 at the close of the conference, touched on a number of timely legal topics in her address to the ABA House of Delegates, the association's policymaking body.
Howard stressed the need for lawyers to step up and do whatever they can to protect citizens' right to vote. She also talked about the need to modernize the structure of the ABA to serve members better. Howard, principal of the Barbara J. Howard law firm in Cincinnati, will serve a one-year term that will conclude in August 2027. Laura V. Farber of California will become president-elect, serving through August 2027. Farber will then become ABA president in 2027.
Howard vowed to continue the fight against assaults on civil rights, the rule of law and initiatives focused on equity and inclusion.
"Over the last 18 months, the ABA has taken the lead in voicing our profession's staunch support for diversity in our profession and for the rule of law," Howard said. "We have taken legal action, where necessary, to challenge government actions that we believe violate our members' constitutional rights and our association's rights with respect to government grants and contracts already funded by Congress."
Howard has long been active in bar association leadership since her involvement in the ABA Young Lawyers Division decades ago. She has been a member of the House of Delegates since 1986 and served as chair of the House from 2020 to 2022. She also served on the ABA Board of Governors, the ABA Journal Board of Editors and the board of the American Bar Foundation.
In the ABA House of Delegates, she served on the Nominating Committee from 2002-2005 and again from 2010-2020, then as Ohio's state delegate. Howard has served on the House Committees on Rules and Calendar, Resolution Impact, Technology and Communications, Issues of Concern to the Profession, Select, Credentials and Admissions, Drafting and Steering Committee of the Nominating Committee. Howard also has served most recently as advisory commission member of the ABA's Task Force for American Democracy and as a member of the ABA Strategic Planning Committee.
With the midterm elections coming this November, Howard said the ABA is committed to ensuring fair and free elections. "Never before have we seen such an attack on voting rights and election integrity on so many fronts," Howard said in her speech. " We are seeing efforts to remove citizens from voter registration rolls without a basis to do so," Howard said. "We are seeing efforts to place what many see as undo restrictions on the right to vote, including proof of citizenship. For many voters, especially women and others who have changed their names, this may well disenfranchise them from voting."
Howard said that sowing the seeds of mistrust about our election system can do serious damage. "What should concern all of us is that such threats and attacks on election integrity and voting security will deepen the sense of voting insecurity, causing many to stay home rather than exercise their right to vote," Howard said. "Even after elections have been decided, there is a significant possibility that the results of those elections will be challenged."
Howard stated the association will not back down from attacks on the election process. "The American Bar Association will continue to defend against these constitutional affronts and will take action when needed to ensure that every citizen has the right to vote, to exercise that right to vote without intimidation, and to rest assured that all votes will be counted, free from interference by any person or entity, including the federal government."
Attacks on the judiciary remain a concern. "For members of the judiciary who often face great personal threats, thank you for fulfilling your oath to exercise independent judgment, free from outside pressures as you decide these election law cases," she said.
Another priority for Howard is modernizing the structure and improving the efficiency of the ABA to help members navigate it better. "We must also attend to the health and wellbeing of our association," she said. "The ABA has operated under the same structure for at least the last 40-50 years, if not longer."
Making the member experience better at the ABA will be a focus for Howard in her year as president. "We have so much value to offer all lawyers in this country," she said. "But we need a structure that allows lawyers to more easily access that value."
Howard emphasized the need for lawyers and the ABA to lead in protecting the rule of law. "Democracy doesn't defend itself - lawyers do," she said.
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